‘Hunting was a way of life for him’
WHEN I catch up with the Ampleforth Beagles kennel-huntsman, Mike Smith, he is looking forward to hunting hounds for the final time at a joint-meet later that week to mark the end of 36 years in hunt service. Listening to the trim 55-year-old reminisce on the highs and lows of his distinguished career is to embark on a tour of some of the most celebrated hunting countries in the land.
Born into a family steeped in farming and venery, Mike was brought up in the Whaddon Chase country during the era of Albert Buckle and Dorian Williams, and began helping out at the kennels as soon as he was
